The MP high court has dismissed a petition demanding judicial probe into SIMI encounter after the state government informed the court that a judicial probe had already been ordered.

The state government informed the high court that a judicial probe had already been ordered into the encounter.(File photo)

The MP high court has dismissed a petition demanding judicial probe into SIMI encounter after the state government informed the court that a judicial probe had already been ordered.

Eight SIMI members escaped from the high security central jail Bhopal and were later killed in the encounter near Bhopal on October 31.

A division bench comprising acting chief justice Rajendra Menon and justice Subash Kakade after hearing the State government counsel dismissed PIL. The court said the probe had already been ordered by the government.

Additional advocate general PK Kaurav, appearing for the State, submitted that the government has taken steps as per the guidelines of apex court in the People’s Union of Civil Liberties (PUCL) Vs State of Maharashtra by ordering the CID probe as well judicial probe. The State issued the order for the judicial probe on November 3.

Retired justice SK Pande will conduct the judicial probe into every aspects of the incident including how the SIMI activists escaped from the central jail and were killed in the encounter.

Awadhesh Bharagava, a Bhopal-based social worker and journalist, filed the PIL on basis of the information gathered from the reports of certain newspapers and television news channels.

The doubt was raised in the PIL as to why the SIMI activists would flee from the jail when the proceedings in the cases in the trial court at Bhopal in which they were made accused were in the final stage. The petitioner submitted the CD of the video clipping of the spot of incident displayed on the news channel where it is seen that a policeman is taking out a knife from the pocket of one of the deceased while other cop fires a shot on the body.